


Interlude

by NighttimeSabbatical



Category: Tales of Vesperia
Genre: Found Family Feels, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 10:51:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17160656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NighttimeSabbatical/pseuds/NighttimeSabbatical
Summary: After Estelle falls ill, the party must stay in Dahngrest while she recuperates. Everyone has their own way of showing they care.





	Interlude

At first, Estelle tried to ignore the warning signs. A growing scratchiness in her throat, a faint sense of weakness, some dizziness—maybe, she thought, all she needed was a good night's sleep. She didn't want to worry anyone, or worse, slow them down. Their work in stopping the Adephagos was far too important to be delayed just because someone may have gotten a cold.  
  
Therefore she'd tough it out, and no one would be the wiser.  
  
She held her resolve until the very next morning. Her head pounded and her throat throbbed and she felt so very, very weak, but most obvious of all was the way she _croaked_ when she wished everyone a good morning.  
  
"You feeling okay?" Rita asked, eyeing her suspiciously.  
  
Estelle cleared her throat, or tried to at least. "I'm fine."  
  
"You don't look fine," Yuri said. "You look like hell. No offense."  
  
"I'm feeling a little sick," she admitted. "But it's nothing I can't handle. Really."  
  
Yuri's response was to press a hand to her forehead, and when his cool fingers touched her skin, his eyes widened. "Dammit, you're burning up. There's no way we can go to Relewiese with your condition." Estelle began to protest but he ignored her, turning to Raven and saying, "Let the innkeeper know we'll be staying a few more days. Maybe even a couple weeks."  
  
Raven left immediately, not even complaining about being ordered around.  
  
Rita felt Estelle's forehead, and hissed, "Seriously? You want to go out like this?"  
  
"I just didn't want to cause anyone trouble," she said in a small voice.  
  
Yuri sighed. "You're not causing anyone trouble. Better to wait a bit to get better than exert yourself and make it worse, right?"  
  
"I guess so." She knew he was right, but she didn't like it.  
  
"Just hang tight, okay? I'll go see if I can get medicine for you." And with that, he left.  
  
What now?  
  
"You wanna lie down?" Rita asked.  
  
"Oh. Yes, actually." She'd appreciate the rest. Maybe she'd be lucky and this little cold of hers would go away by the evening.  
  
But instead of getting better, over the next few days her condition only grew worse. Soon she was so weak she couldn't even contemplate leaving her bed, or even talk without her throat hurting.  
  
Yuri seemed determined to instate himself as her errand boy. He took all her meals to her, kept the glass of water at her beside constantly full, and immediately got her an extra blanket if she even hinted at being cold. He doted on her like a mother hen.  
  
When she pointed out to him that he was essentially mothering her, his face reddened and he quickly changed the subject, but that didn't stop him one bit. Not that she minded.  
  
Rita, too, constantly worried over her. She spent nearly every waking moment in Estelle's room, sometimes even staying while she napped. She'd sit on the lone armchair, reading a book, keeping utterly quiet instead of muttering to herself as she normally did while she read.  
  
Karol made her chicken soup from scratch, and grinned when she told him how delicious it was. The chef's guild was seriously missing out.  
  
With his meagre healing skills, Raven attempted to soothe her pain, and though he had very limited success Estelle appreciated the effort more than she could say. He stayed up with her on nights she couldn't fall asleep, claiming "us old folks don't need ta sleep as much as you young'ns do", and she chose not to remind him that he was always the last one up in the morning and whined whenever someone woke him before he wanted to be.  
  
The special Krityan tea Judith brewed soothed her throat like nothing else. It seemed like every time she finished a batch, Judith would immediately present her with another, and Estelle had no idea how she did it—the recipe took a full two days to make, so Judith must have spent hours at it every day.  
  
Repede, even, let her pet him. Just once, in one of the rare moments when Estelle was alone. _Maybe I should get sick more often_ , she thought as she patted his head.  
  
By the end of the second week the sickness began to subside, until finally Yuri was satisfied to continue their journey.  
  
The night before they were set to leave, they both sat on a sofa in the common room. By now everyone else had gone to bed, since they had to be up at the crack of dawn tomorrow if they planned on getting to Relewiese in time. Estelle intended to go to bed soon, too—just after a bit.  
  
"It's ironic," she said. "I'm a healer, yet I can't even heal myself. I can be such a burden, can't I?"  
  
Yuri gave her a flat look. "Estelle, don't even think it. You've always been the force holding all of us together. You've healed my wounds more times than I can count—without you, we'd all be dead. So what if you needed a little extra attention the past few weeks? As far as I'm concerned, you've earned it." He paused. "Sorry. Think I came off a little more bluntly than I intended."  
  
"It's fine—you're right," she said. "Thank you." She loved that she could always trust him to say what he thought—it was one of his most valuable attributes as a friend.  
  
She was almost glad her sickness had happened, she mused as she went off to bed. She thought she understood the others a little better now. She hoped she would never take it for granted, the fact that she had a group of friends she could honestly call family.


End file.
